KARACHI, Sunday, September 20, 2026: The September Sub-National Immunization Days (SNIDs) polio campaign was inaugurated at the Rotary Club of Karachi Community Centre in Gulistan-e-Jauhar on Sunday, ahead of a seven-day vaccination drive targeting 31 million children under five across 115 high-risk districts of Pakistan.
The campaign, scheduled to run from September 21 to 27, will cover designated high-risk areas in Balochistan, Gilgit-Baltistan, Islamabad, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Sindh.
National Chair PolioPlus Committee Aziz Memon, who is also a past trustee of The Rotary Foundation, inaugurated the September SNIDs alongside Emergency Operations Centre focal person Dr Ahmad Ali Shaikh, Rotary District 3271 Governor Shahzad Sabir and District Governor-Elect Fahad Sikandar.
Rotary Club of Karachi President Humayun Qureshi and several Rotarians also attended the inauguration.
31 million children targeted in September campaign
Under the September SNIDs, vaccination teams will seek to reach all children below the age of five in the targeted districts as part of ongoing efforts to interrupt poliovirus transmission.
According to organisers, three large-scale nationwide vaccination campaigns have already been conducted since the beginning of 2026, reaching around 45 million children.
In selected high-risk areas, oral polio vaccine (OPV) was administered alongside fractional-dose injectable polio vaccine (fIPV) to strengthen immunity, particularly among vulnerable children.
Speaking at the inauguration, Aziz Memon described polio eradication as a collective responsibility and urged parents and caregivers to ensure children receive all recommended polio vaccine doses as well as routine immunisations.
He said Rotarians support frontline polio workers during vaccination campaigns, monitor National and Sub-National Immunization Days in their districts and engage community leaders to encourage vaccination and counter misinformation.
Pakistan continues polio eradication efforts
Pakistan and Afghanistan remain the two countries where transmission of wild poliovirus has not yet been interrupted.
The September campaign will focus on high-risk districts as health authorities and partner organisations continue efforts to reach eligible children and strengthen population immunity against the virus.
Officials have repeatedly stressed that multiple vaccine doses are necessary to provide children with stronger protection and that every eligible child should be reached during vaccination campaigns.